Rebuilding the relationship between the Police and the Communities that they serve one voice at a time.

Washington, D.C. Police Break Up a fight then “bust some moves”

October 26, 2015 Washington, D.C. A group of teens were fighting and Police arrived to break up the fight. As other youths lingered around Officers attempted to get the group to disperse. This can lead to tense moments that can easily spark into more conflict with Officers or cause teens to lose face among peers by appearing to take orders from authorities. The later becoming a problem further down the road that will often end in further conflict.

But thanks to an unnamed Washington, D.C. Officer who was quick thinking and fast on her feet as well the group was dispersed in a rather unusual but highly effective way that will have lingering implications for those involved.

One of the participants of the group that was lingering was Adore Liyah who was actually enthusiastic about her encounter with the D.C. Officer and posted it on her facebook account. She stated “So basically I was trynna get to this girl but the police told me to go home so we made this deal if i win u leave but if u win I step andddddd she step 😴✌🏽️”

The deal was struck between the Officer and Aaliyah Taylor 17, if the Officer won the “Dance Off” the teens would disperse, if not then they could stay.

Other teens who were gathered had taken video’s of the “dance off” between the Officer and Aaliyah Taylor. While News outlets show approximately 55 seconds of video the Officer actually danced her heart out for over a minute and forty seconds (1:40s)wearing her vest and gun belt which adds up to a hefty 30 pounds of extra gear at a minimum.

That fact too was not lost on some of the comments on Adores original posting, one being “The cop won bc she dancing in that heavy ass belt. Lmao ”

Both Officer and Taylor believe that they won the “Dance Off” and were interviewed by the Washington Post.

“I mostly hold my head down when I dance, so I didn’t really see her,” Taylor said. “But when I looked at the video after, I was like ‘Oh, she has some moves.’”

The Officer is a returning Veteran of Iraq and has been with the D.C. Police Department for about 3 years but did not want to be identified stating: “It’s kind of embarrassing that this became so big,” she said. “This is what we do everyday.” She also stated that she did not want the story to be about her, but wanted people to understand that this is what Officers do everyday.

Marinos Marinos, the secretary of the D.C. police union, said these sorts of personal interactions between officers and residents aren’t unusual — it’s just that most don’t make it to the Internet.

“We are humans just like everyone else,” Marinos said. “Everyday we come in contact with thousands of citizens and almost all of them have positive outcomes.”

D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier wrote in a statement. that “the viral video today of the First District Officer positively engaging with teens and diffusing the conflict yesterday in a manner that appropriately resolved the call is reflective of the many positive police-community interactions that take place daily in Washington, D.C.”

Taylor said that she originally had a bad impression of officers but that has since changed. “I thought all cops were cruel because that’s how I saw them,” Taylor said. “I’ve now seen there are good cops out there.” She also said “Instead of us fighting, she tried to turn it around and make it something fun,” Taylor said. “I never expected cops to be that cool. There are some good cops.”

This is a perfect example of Community Policing and an extreme example of deescalation that happens within our communities everyday. While every Officer may not be able to go out and dance as this officer did. Every officer should be able to effectively communicate with members of their community on a personal basis.

Officers are NOT social workers, but they are the now the very thread of fabric that is holding our society together when it is being torn apart. Where there is separation in our communities, the only repairs that will be immediately seen will be stitched in Blue.

Watch the Moves that were busted by a DC Officer and let us know what you think.